This was a revote on an amendment offered by Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) that had been previously approved (see Roll Call 166) by the Committee of the Whole. The amendment was attached to a housing assistance bill for those affected by the 2005 hurricanes along the Gulf Coast. Under House rules, any lawmaker -- in this case Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.) -- can demand a revote by the full House on an amendment adopted in the Committee of the Whole.

The Committee of the Whole is used to expedite the business of the House and utilizes a lower quorum threshold, restricted time for debate and limits on the kinds of parliamentary maneuvers allowed. (A quorum is the minimum number of lawmakers required to get things done. In the full House a quorum is 218 Members whereas a quorum in the Committee of the Whole is only 100.)

Green's amendment was approved the first time in the Committee of the Whole on a vote of 246-184. The amendment would extend Federal Emergency Management Agency housing assistance for evacuees of the 2005 hurricanes until the end of 2007, after which time evacuees would be transferred into a temporary Section 8 voucher program for rental assistance. (Landlords would not be required to accept the vouchers.)

The revote yielded much of the same result as the first vote, as 13 Republicans joined all 229 Democrats present in voting for it. The final tally was 242-184, onlyfour votes different from the first roll call. Thus, a housing assistance bill for those affected by the 2005 hurricanes along the Gulf Coast maintained a previously added provision that would extend FEMA housing assistance until the end of 2007 and then allow displaced residents who qualify for Section 8 rental assistance to receive it from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.